One hundred and fifty-three migrants who were trying to reach England aboard two overloaded boats were rescued Thursday in the Strait of Pas-de-Calais, the maritime prefecture announced in a press release. Thursday, “two migrant boats in difficulty in the strait” were reported to the Gris-Nez Regional Operational Surveillance and Rescue Center (Cross), the Channel and North Sea maritime prefecture said in a press release.
Request for assistance
On the night of Wednesday to Thursday, a boat “very busy” of migrants took to the sea in the Gravelines sector (North) and “after a few hours of sailing”the people on board the boat asked for assistance, she reported. Rescuers recovered 77 shipwrecked people from this boat who were dropped off at the port of Calais, the maritime prefecture said. On Thursday morning, a second boat in difficulty, stopped off Le Portel (Pas-de-Calais), was rescued with 76 people on board who were dropped off at the port of Boulogne-sur-Mer.
Once at the dock, the castaways were “supported by land rescue services and border police”. On April 23, five migrants died off the coast of Wimereux while trying to cross the Channel on an overloaded boat, bringing to at least 15 the number of migrants who will die in 2024 in crossing attempts. On March 3, a seven-year-old girl died in Watten (North) in the Aa canal, which flows into the North Sea, after the capsize of a small boat loaded with migrants.
